


The Path Of The Hunter

by darthrevaan (Burning_Nightingale)



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Coming of Age, Developing Friendships, Gen, Hunters & Hunting, Mild Gore, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-29
Updated: 2019-03-29
Packaged: 2019-11-26 13:42:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18181349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burning_Nightingale/pseuds/darthrevaan
Summary: Ahsoka and the Trial Of The Hunter; or, how Ahsoka got her akul teeth headdress.





	The Path Of The Hunter

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LittleRaven](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleRaven/gifts).



 

“You wish to take a trial.”

To her credit, Shaak Ti managed to sound only a little incredulous. It was annoying, but Ahsoka would take it - her creché master almost laughed herself hoarse.

“Yes,” Ahsoka said, drawing herself up in her chair, trying to sound as firm and confident as she possibly could.

The sun outside was sinking below the city skyline, and the warm light poured in through the windows of Shaak Ti’s quarters, painting everything gold. For long moments the Jedi Master didn’t speak, but simply watched Ahsoka, her expression neutral. Ahsoka did her best not to squirm under the scrutiny.

“You are aware you can only take each Trial once?” Shaak Ti asked. “You have only one chance at success or failure.”

“I know.”

“And you still wish to proceed?” Ahsoka nodded. “And which Path do you wish to take?”

“The Path of the Hunter,” Ahsoka said with no hesitation.

Shaak Ti’s neutral expression broke into one of surprise for just a moment, before she schooled herself back to neutrality. “That is a bold choice, young one.”

“I’m ready,” Ahsoka said, trying to sound assured and calm; inside she felt like a raging, screaming ball of impatience. She knew she was ready for the Trial; and the only thing standing in her way was Shaak Ti.

The Jedi Master sighed, then slowly nodded her head. “It is your own choice, to decide when you are ready, and I cannot prevent you.”

Something inside Ahsoka’s chest jumped with excitement. “So I can go? To Shili?”

“You can. Luckily for you, there is another Jedi who wishes to take her own Trial; she can be your guardian on the trip.”

Ahsoka tried not to wince. She was not of age, and as yet not a Padawan; she should have expected that she wouldn’t be allowed to leave the Temple on her own. “When do we leave?”

The hint of a smile touched Shaak Ti’s face. “As soon as your companion is ready.”

/

Just over a day later, Ahsoka practically bounced up the ramp of the ship waiting in the Temple hangar, clutching the strap of the kitbag slung over her shoulder. What with the war, she hadn’t left Coruscant since her clan’s trip to Illum to find their lightsaber crystals. Excitement fizzed through her veins like soda, and she hurried down the hallway into the cockpit.

There was only one person waiting for her. She was a Togruta with tall, sweeping montrals and a sunburst-like pattern on each cheek, no older than thirty - and stunningly pretty. She was sitting in the pilot’s chair, and had been making checks of the various equipment around the cockpit; but when Ahsoka burst in she turned with a smile. “Ahsoka, I presume?”

Ahsoka nodded mutely, stunned for a moment by her companion’s appearance. She had, she realized, been expecting a stuffy old Jedi who would ruin any fun to be had on an adventure outside the Temple. This woman didn’t look anything like she had expected.

“You’re Master Ly?” Ahsoka asked.

She smiled. “Call me Shayana. I’ll feel like a grandma if you keep calling me Master Ly all the time.” She gestured to the co-pilot’s chair, and after a moment of hesitation, Ahsoka sat down. “So. Excited?”

Ahsoka grinned, feeling that bubbling excitement resurface. “Very.”

“I remember my first Trial,” Shayana said with a wide smile. “I felt so excited I thought I would burst, right up until I was about to set foot in the Trial room. Then I felt so nervous I thought I would be sick!”

“But you completed your Trial?” Ahsoka asked.

Shayana nodded. “It wasn’t easy, but I did.”

“Which Trial was it?”

“The Path of the Diplomat.”

“And which Trial are you going to complete now?”

“You do ask a lot of questions, don’t you?” Shayana said, still grinning. “Why don’t we get this bird into hyperspace? Then we’ll have hours and hours for questions.”

Ahsoka didn’t miss the way Shayana had dodged the question, but she didn’t push. She wasn’t much help with the piloting, but their vessel didn’t have much need of a co-pilot; soon enough Shayana had them in the air, then breaking atmosphere, and then making the lurching jump to hyperspace. “How long will the journey take?” Ahsoka asked as the starlines stretched out around them.

Shayana consulted the navicomputer. “Just over a full standard day.” She locked the controls, then stood up from the pilot’s seat. “I’ve brought quite a bit of work with me, so that’ll probably fill up my day. But we can do dinner?”

Ahsoka grinned. “That sounds great!”

Ahsoka had also brought work to do – or rather, she had been _given_ work – but she was too excited to sit quietly and look at a datapad. The ship was tiny, but she wanted to explore every part of it, peering into all the secret corners and hidden nooks. It took her the best part of two hours to satisfy her curiosity – a good half hour of which was taken up trying to open the door to the engine room (despite her best efforts, it remained firmly locked). She spent another hour sitting in the pilot’s chair, matching the controls she could see to those she’d learnt about in her introduction to piloting course. None of them would move or respond – only Shayana had the code that would unlock the console – but it was fun to pretend that she was the one flying, that she could go anywhere in the universe that she pleased.

Still, the ship could only hold her attention for so long, and soon enough she found herself back on her bunk, staring at the ceiling. She really didn’t want to start her homework. There was no gym, and her cabin wasn’t big enough to practise, but Shayana had said she would be busy with work all day, so maybe in the hold…

The hold was large, clearly a space meant for storing supplies or cargo. It was also slightly colder than the rest of the ship, and Ahsoka shivered a little as she took her stance in the middle of the space. It didn’t matter; with the intensity of her practise, she’d be warm soon enough.

Her spear practise and moving meditation kept her busy for another hour or so, until she had to admit defeat, and retreated to her cabin to work on her homework.

She knocked on Shayana’s door at around seven pm galatic standard, and invited her into the galley for dinner.

“Thank you for making this,” Shayana said as she sat down, “I’d quite forgotten the time.”

All they’d had on board were the standard cook-in-a-bag rations every starship was advised to carry in case of emergency, which required nothing more than a little water and a few minutes in the microgrill to prepare, but Ahsoka appriciated her thanks. “We learnt how to use them on my piloting and space travel course.”

“Introduction To Spaceflight?” Shayana asked, quoting the name of the course, “I remember that one! In the flight simulator, I crashed the ship within thirty seconds of take-off.” She laughed. “I’ve got a bit better since then.”

“I sure hope so,” Ahsoka laughed.

They ate in silence for a few minutes before Shayana asked, “Are you nervous about the Trial, Ahsoka?”

Ahsoka paused, considering. “Yes and no. I’m confident I have a good chance of passing the Trial, but I can’t help but think about what happens if I don’t.”

Shayana nodded. “I feel much the same myself.”

Ahsoka burned to ask which Trial Shayana was taking, but she had avoided answering the question earlier, and she was unlikely to be any more inclined to answer now. Instead Ahsoka said, “Mostly I’m nervous about my spear. I’m not really used to it.”

“Yes, the spear is a condition of the Trial, isn’t it? I tried using one once.” Shayana made a face that accurately illustrated what she’d thought of that.

“But I still think I can do it,” Ahsoka said stubbornly.

“Good. Although, they will give you a chance to refuse the Trial before you commit to it, if you have a last-minute change of heart.” Shayana put down her fork. “Well, that was…”

“It was food,” Ahsoka said, putting down her own cutlery. “You don’t have to praise it to spare my feelings.”

Shayana laughed. “Good, because the best that can be said about that was that it was…a minimal amount of nourishment.”

“Exactly the amount of calories needed for the average humanoid sentient from one meal,” Ahsoka said, “Or so it says on the packet.” This time they both laughed.

Shayana helped her with the clear-up, then sat back down at the galley table. “Usually I would offer to make tea or caf,” she said as Ahsoka slipped back into the seat opposite her, “But this ship is remarkably understocked.”

“Better make a complaint to the Council,” Ahsoka said.

“I mean, I might, actually.” Shayana leant back, looking at Ahsoka intently. “Listen, I hope you don’t mind me saying, but…you are quite young, to be attempting the Trial of the Hunter.”

Ahsoka nodded. “My creché master said the same. Said it ruder, though. Master Ti was clearly thinking it, though she still let me come.”

“I don’t think she thought either of us were ready,” Shayana said quietly, “but she would never have prevented us from going.” She looked back up at Ahsoka. “Why take the Trial, then? _You_ clearly don’t think you’re too young.”

“Because I have a plan,” Ahsoka said immediately. Then, slower, she added, “And, well…I guess I’m hoping if I have at least one Trial under my belt, maybe I’ll be a more attractive prospect as a padawan.”

Shayana’s expression became sympathetic. “There are a lot of masters not taking padawans, what with the war. It’s not you.”

“Maybe. But there _are_ masters taking padawans, and I want to be one of them. And soon.” _Because I’m already thirteen, and if I have to wait too much longer, I might get passed over for good._

Shayana clearly knew what she meant, but she didn’t comment on it. “I’m going to take the Trial of the Warrior,” she said out of the blue.

Ahsoka looked at her with surprise. “That’s a bit different from the Trial of the Diplomat.”

“These are different times.” Shayana smiled, but it lacked the vibrant energy she’d had before. “I suppose I feel…I feel I might be more prepared for my place in this war, if I can prove myself.”

Ahsoka didn’t know what to say in return, but she felt…good, that Shayana had trusted her enough to share something meaningful in return. That they were trusting each other with these things; making some sort of connection, no matter how fleeting.

 _Maybe_ , Ahsoka thought, _maybe, just maybe she’ll want me to be her padawan_.

They said goodnight soon afterward, and Ahsoka found herself lying awake in her room, unable to sleep, too many thoughts running through her head. Visiting Shili again tomorrow; Shayana maybe becoming her Jedi Master; having to pass the Trial of the Hunter.

It was going to be hard to sleep tonight.

/

They arrived at Shili almost as soon as Ahsoka woke up.

She felt the tug of the ship returning to realspace, and hurried up to the cockpit to look. Shayana was at the controls, and out of the viewport Ahsoka could see a purple-red planet hanging in the night sky in front of them.

Shili. The planet she’d been born on, and taken from almost as quickly. She hadn’t been back since Master Plo found her and brought her to the Temple; the sight of it stirred something in her stomach that was both nerves and excitement.

“Ready?” Shayana asked.

“Definitely,” Ahsoka said, trying to project a confidence she’d didn’t quite feel. “Besides, don’t we have to be there soon?”

“All Novices are required to gather in the Pearl Hall by sundown today,” Shayana said. With a twitch of the joystick she sent their craft sailing toward Shili’s surface. “It’ll be mid-afternoon on the surface now, so we’d better get ourselves there sooner rather than later.”

The docking and immigration process was smooth and orderly, and it was only an hour and a half before Shayana and Ahsoka were free to wander the streets of Shili’s planetary capital, Carosa. It was a compact, elegant city, with leafy streets and tall buildings that rose gracefully into the sky; to Ahsoka they looked like large seed pods, laid out in neat rows across the city.

“I’m not sure how much you’ve learnt about Shili yet,” Shayana said as they walked the main street. “Do you know why our cities are built in valleys and gorges, or atop mesas?”

“For protection against the creatures that roam the grasslands,” Ahsoka recited, distracted by the sights and sounds of a new city.

“And the buildings? They’re called lodges, and each one of them houses-”

“An entire clan,” Ahsoka finished. “Sorry,” she added, “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

Shayana smiled. “I didn’t mean to lecture. I must sound like a tour guide!”

“More like my cultural studies teacher. Can we see the Plia Waterfall?” It was the most interesting sight she remembered from when her class had discussed the historical and cultural sights of Shili; the huge waterfall that ran in from the northern end of the gorge in which Carosa nestled, famous for the way its water made rainbows over the rocks.

Shayana nodded. “We’d better be quick, though; it’s quite a way out to the northern end of the city.”

They managed to visit the towering, stunning waterfall and make it back in time for sundown, but they cut it a little fine. They were among the last stragglers to trickle into the Grand Central Square as the sun disappeared behind the lip of the gorge.

The Square was a wide expanse of paved stone, notable mostly for its size and the pretty fountain that tinkled and shimmered at the centre of it. They had no time to see it up close, but Ahsoka had seen pictures; it depicted the various creatures of Shili, with a Togruta man and woman at the top holding a cup from which the water poured.

Facing each other across the Grand Square were the two most important buildings in Carosa; the Royal Lodge and the Pearl Hall. The Royal Lodge had much the same shape as Carosa’s other lodges, though larger and with considerably more embellishment. Sixty years ago it had housed Shili’s royal family; with the advent of the Shilian Republic, it was now the centre of federal government for the planet and its colonies. Across from it, the grand structure known as the Pearl Hall loomed, the largest and most imposing building in the city. Shaped in a long rectangle, a vast number of pillars held up the heavily sculpted and embellished roof, but the Hall was otherwise open to the elements. As they walked closer, Ahsoka could see where it had got its name; the light from the braziers lit within made the white stone sparkle like the river pearls found in shellfish throughout Shili’s waterways.

She and Shayana mounted the steps and passed through into the space beyond, finding themselves in a vast open hall packed with people. The centre of the chaos seemed very far away to Ahsoka, but she could see that there was something there, something that looked like a raised dais of some kind.

“This was the really manic part, last time,” Shayana said.

“What’s happening?”

“We have to register as Novices looking to complete the Trials. You see the large banners? Underneath each is a registration desk. Look, Hunters go over there.” She pointed to a spot halfway down the hall, where a huge banner bearing the symbol of the Hunter’s Path - an upright spear - fluttered in the wind above a long line of other Togruta. “Warrior’s Path is just next to it, so I won’t be far,” Shayana said as they started toward it. “Once you’re registered, they’ll take you out to gather in the Square. After that you’ll be escorted wherever you’re going; onto the plains for you, and to the arena for me.” She sounded nervous. “Both Trials take about a week. Whenever you get back here, go to the ship; I’ll either be waiting for you, or I’ll see you there.”

Ahsoka grasped her hand. “Good luck. Don’t be nervous.”

“I’m very nervous, but thank you.” Shayana squeezed her hand in return. “Good luck with your Trial too, Ahsoka.”

As she watched Shayana disappear into the crowd, Ahsoka felt a thrill of nerves run through her. She was alone now; anything could happen. For just a second the idea ran through her head that she could go anywhere, do anything; she could walk right out of the Pearl Hall and into some other life. The Jedi might never know what had happened.

Instead, she found the end of the Hunters’ line and joined the queue. It stretched like a long, winding snake in front of her, moving slowly forward by inches every so often.

Ahsoka closed her eyes for a moment and sighed. It was going to be a very long wait.

/

Several hours later, Ahsoka found herself herded onto a landspeeder with several other Novices. There were about twenty of them in total, all packed into the small confines of the landspeeder as it powered up and began to hum out of the city, heading toward the distant plains.

Ahsoka was just grateful for the chance to sit down. Standing for what felt like days in that queue, listening to the chaos of noise and raised voices around her, she’d wished with every fibre of her body for the quiet and calm peace of the Temple. She’d never realised how comforting it was until that moment.

“You look kinda disappointed,” said a voice to her left.

Ahsoka opened her eyes and looked at the speaker. She was a female Togruta, and unlike most of the other Novices, she seemed to be around Ahsoka’s age. Her montrals and lekku were banded in grey and purple, and she was smiling. “Is something wrong?” she asked.

Ahsoka opened her mouth and closed it again, wondering how to put what she felt into words. “I just expected it to be a bit more…a bit less _bureaucratic_.”

The girl next to her laughed. “That’s the republic for you,” she said. “The Shilian Republic, not the galactic one,” she added. “Are you not from Shili?”

Ahsoka shook her head. “Coruscant,” she said, deciding to leave out the part where she was a Jedi.

“I guess they still play up the Trials as the big ceremonial coming-of-age rituals, right?” Ahsoka nodded slowly, and the girl continued, “There used to be a lot more ceremony to it; fire dances and drinking, that sort of thing. My grandmother still remembers being initiated with a ritual in the Pearl Hall - but her generation was one of the last. The republic thinks it’s a practise too strongly associated with the monarchy and the power of the old tribes, so they changed it. They much prefer orderly queues and signed forms.”

“Oh.”

The girl grinned. “We still do it out in the villages, though. Our Novices are given quite the send off.” She blinked, then held out her hand. “I’m Tylan, by the way.”

“Ahsoka,” Ahsoka said, taking her hand. “I guess I just…didn’t know how much had changed, with the change from monarchy to republic. Do you know where we’re going?”

“To one of the outlying villages. You might want to catch some sleep; it’ll be a long trip.”  
  
Ahsoka looked around the cabin, but it seemed the only place to sleep would be here, sitting up, with her head against the hard metal wall of the landspeeder. “Can you really sleep here?”

“I can sleep anywhere, my friend.” Tylan leant her head back and closed her eyes, seemingly unbothered by the uncomfortable conditions, and as far as Ahsoka could tell, she went to sleep. Around them, the other Novices were either attempting to follow Tylan’s example or looking down at their hands – a few even seemed to be meditating. None of them looked open to conversation.

With a heavy sigh, Ahsoka leant her head back and tried to slip into sleep. The seat's cushioning was thin, and the metal frame dug into the back of her head; time stretched indeterminately as she sat there, suspended in the darkness behind her eyes, feeling the landspeeder shift and hum as it sped out into the darkness. Around her she could feel the other twenty Novices as they breathed, slept, thought; above in the cockpit she could feel the bright concentration of the driver as he navigated around unseen obstacles. She let the soft flow of the lives around her flow over her in the Force, until it eventually lulled her into sleep.

Tylan was the one to shake her awake. “We’re here,” she said, her voice tense; Ahsoka could feel the combination of excitement and nerves her new friend was projecting in the Force.

Ahsoka took her hand and let her pull her to her feet. They hopped out of the landspeeder together, into a landscape far different than Carosa.

Her breath caught for a moment as Ahsoka got her first glimpse of Shili’s famous grasslands. Extending to the horizon in every direction, the swaying sea of purple-red grass waved and flowed with the fickle gusts of the wind, creating a shifting carpet that could have fooled the eye into thinking they were on an island in the midst of a wine-coloured ocean. Far out near the horizon Ahsoka could see large, humped shapes she assumed were mesas, while close at hand was a bare patch of ground dotted with sturdy, airy tents.

“This way,” Tylan said, tugging on her hand. Ahsoka hadn’t noticed that the other Novices had all filed out of the landspeeder and were making their way toward the tents; she and Tylan broke into a jog to catch up with them. Their official escort was leading them to the centre of the small village, silent and sombre, and the other Novices seemed to be matching her mood. Ahsoka tried, schooling her face into a serious expression, but inside her chest excitement bubbled like an overflowing volcano.

Waiting in the centre of the village was a Togruta woman with tall, white-and-blue banded montrals and an impressive glower on her face. She looked tough, athletic, physically imposing, and her amber eyes were piercing as she met each of their eyes in turn. “Novices,” she said, her voice carrying over the assembled crowd without effort, “You are gathered here to take part in one of our most sacred rituals. You come here as Novices; if you are successful, you will leave as Masters.” Her outstretched arm indicated the tents. “You will have one day here to rest, reflect, and select your partner for this Trial. Remember; as the akul has two sets of teeth, so hunters move together in pairs. Each pair will bring down one akul – and in so doing, pass the Hunter’s Trial.” She nodded, then turned away and disappeared into the largest of the tents.

Sensing that they had been dismissed, the Novices began to talk among themselves, small groups forming as the tension in the atmosphere relaxed just a little bit.

Ahsoka steeled herself. She had her own plan on how to deal with hunting the akul, but this was the one part of the Trial she hadn’t been able to prepare for; having to find a partner to take with her out onto the plains. But maybe….

It seemed Tylan had had the same idea. She was right behind Ahsoka when she turned around, one hand held out. “Partners?”

Ahsoka took her hand again. “Partners,” she agreed, shaking on it. As Tylan grinned, Ahsoka asked, “Did you sit next to me because you wanted to ask me to be your partner?”

Tylan gestured around them. “No one else here is as young as we are. I figured we may as well stick together.” She winked. “Maybe we’ll be able to show them up, huh?”

“We will.” Ahsoka said, confidence filling her voice.

Tylan looked amused. "How do you figure that?"

Ahsoka glanced around, checking that no one was watching them. “I have a secret,” she said, “Let me show you.”

Tylan looked intrigued, and followed Ahsoka without question out through the tents to the edge of the village. Ahsoka stopped just where the plains began and turned to face Tylan, doing another sweep of the area to check no one was watching them. So far as she could tell, they were alone.

“This is my secret,” she said, and slipped her lightsaber from the hidden holster under her cloak.

Tylan’s face was a picture of shock as Ahsoka’s lightsaber bathed her in green light. “You’re a _Jedi_?” Ahsoka nodded, and Tylan gave a low whistle. “No wonder you’ve come to do the Trial so young.” Then she frowned. “But you can’t use that in the Trial,” she said, pointing to the lightsaber, “We’re restricted to the traditional spear.

“I know,” Ahsoka said, putting the lightsaber away again. Sheepishly she admitted, “I just thought revealing it like that would be cool.”

“It was cool,” Tylan said, clearly hiding a laugh. “So. Can you do anything else with your Jedi powers, other than your lightsaber?”

“That’s where my plan comes in,” Ahsoka said.

“Tell you what; let’s go get some food, and then you can tell me about it, hmm?” Tylan gestured back toward the tents.

“Sounds good to me.”

Back in the centre of the small settlement, the other Novices seemed to be falling into pairs around the campfire that was just being lit. Off to the side, some of the people who lived here - whether they were villagers or volunteers who specifically helped with the Trial, Ahsoka didn’t know - had set up a stove and cooking area to prepare the night’s meal. At the horizon the sun was now setting in a burst of glorious colour, and the burgeoning fire would soon be glowing in the dimness.

Ahsoka and Tylan sat down at the edge of the gathering, slightly removed from the other Novices. “So, illuminate me as to your great plan, oh wise Jedi,” Tylan said, grinning mischievously.

Ahsoka grinned back, but didn’t rise to her bait. “As a Jedi, I can sense creatures in the world around me, even when I can’t see them. My plan was to hike out into the plains to where the akul live, and then track one down using my Force senses.” She shrugged. “Pretty simple, really.”

“Sounds damn useful.” Tylan gestured around the gathering. “What can you sense here?”

“Here…” Ahsoka concentrated. “It’s hard to get a clear read on any one person; there are too many people concentrated in one place to really feel their minds individually. At least, for me; a Master might be able to sense individuals better.”

“That’s pretty amazing,” Tylan said; for once she sounded completely genuine. “You really think you can track an akul with that power?”

“Well, I’m no good at tracking them any other way, so I hope so.”

Tylan raised a brow. “A Hunter’s Path Novice who can’t track?”

“They don’t focus much on teaching it in the Temple. There’s not a lot of Jedi who have field skills like tracking and surviving in the wilderness, and the only time they can teach classes is when they have enough of a break in their missions to commit to a class. So, usually it’s theory-only.”

“Good thing you have your partner here to put your mind at ease,” Tylan said, “I’m much better at that than the spear. My plan was to team up with someone who looked like they might know what they were doing with their weapon, but I guess I’ll have to settle for you.”

“Hey! I can use a spear!”

Tylan laughed. “I’m just teasing. Let’s go get some food.”

They didn’t talk about strategy for the rest of the night; instead, Tylan shared stories of her life in a town in the southern hemisphere of Shili, a small settlement perched atop a mesa. In return, Ahsoka told her about the Temple, Coruscant, and the rigours of Jedi training. As the night grew later, they confessed their reasons for daring to take on the Trial so young; Ahsoka to try and prove herself to potential Masters, and Tylan to honour the memory of her father.

“He passed the Hunter’s Trial when he was fourteen,” she said, looking pensively into the fire, “I want to do the same. Maybe make it a tradition of sorts.”

They were on their way back to the tent they’d been given for the night when Ahsoka spotted the skull hanging from a nearby standing pole. “Is that-?”

“An akul? Yep.” Ahsoka followed Tylan as she went to stand under it. “Nasty, isn’t it?”

The akul’s skull was larger than the skull of the Kuati bear kept in the biology classrooms at the Temple, with a huge gaping maw filled with the distinctive double row of teeth. Ahsoka shivered as she looked at them, imagining them catching on her arm or leg - or worse. “Suddenly I’m a lot less confident about killing one of these things,” she murmured.

Tylan’s fist connected with her arm in a friendly punch. “Don’t give up on me now, Jedi,” she said, chipper as always. “Remember, we’ve got an edge.”

Despite herself, Ahsoka smiled. “Yeah, I guess we do.”

/

The morning of the Trial dawned bright and clear, a warm sun rising over the swaying grasslands. Ahsoka was up to see it; she hadn’t been able to get much sleep. In her mind’s eye she kept seeing the akul skull on its pole, kept imagining its teeth sinking into her flesh. In the next few days she and Tylan would somehow have to kill one of those beasts, using only their wits, her Force powers, and their traditional spears.

Tylan rose and washed with her, and they walked together to get breakfast. The woman who had welcomed them yesterday - Lhysa - was eating as well, and over the course of the meal one or two of the Novices went over and spoke quietly with her. To each one she simply nodded before dismissing them politely.

“They’re quitting,” Tylan said quietly.

Ahsoka nodded. “I thought as much.”

“There’s no shame in it, much as some people would like to tell you there is. There’s no point taking a Trial if you’re not ready.”

Ahsoka watched as one of the former Novices walked back through camp, his bag on his shoulder. Should she be following his example? So many had expressed doubts over her being here. She cast a look at Tylan, who seemed entirely engaged in eating her breakfast, a looseness to her stance that spoke of confidence and surety. _No_ , Ahsoka thought, _I can’t give up. If Tylan believes she can do it, then I can as well_.

Lhysa called the Novices together shortly after the meal finished. “You stand here today as Novices, still untested and untried,” she began. “But after this week some of you may become Masters; those who have attained the peak of the Path, and exist as an example of their discipline’s glory.” She gave each of them a hard look. “But Mastery does not stop after you complete your Trial. You cannot allow yourself to become complacent, to slip from the peak. With Mastery comes responsibility; to act as a beacon for those who come after.” After another significant pause she continued in a much softer voice, “Some of you may fail this Trial; and once you have failed, there is no returning. So I ask now; is there anyone who has reflected upon themselves, and judged it better to wait?” When no one spoke, she added, “Remember that there is much wisdom in knowing when you are not ready.”

For just a second, Ahsoka wavered again; but then she stood taller. She had decided; she was ready.

When no one spoke up, Lhysa gestured to the wilderness behind her. “Beyond this camp there will be no aid, no rescue, and minimal shelter. You might return with or without an akul’s teeth; or you may not return at all. But know that once you cross into this wilderness, you will be beyond our help until you cross out again.” She met each Novice’s eye in turn. “Your goal is to kill an akul and bring back its teeth. You may take only seven days. Do you understand?”

“Yes, master,” they all said in unison.

“Do you accept your Trial, knowing that past this point, there is no turning back?”

Another chorus of “Yes, master.”

Lhysa swept her outstretched arm toward the grasslands. “Then go, and the Hunter’s blessings upon you.”

Some of the others ran headlong toward the wilderness, but by unspoken agreement Ahsoka and Tylan set off at a light jog, unhurried and steady. Ahsoka knew she could keep the pace up for a long while if need be, and there was no need to rush. They had seven days to find an akul.

The group of them spread out in several different directions, and after roughly a quarter hour Ahsoka had lost sight of both the camp and her fellow Novices. She slowed to a fast walk, and Tylan dropped back to match her pace. “So, the Trial begins.” Her voice practically rippled with excitement.

Ahsoka nodded, her eyes scanning the plains, her senses alert for any sight or sound of danger; but around her the grasslands were quiet, the only sounds the hiss of the wind through the grass and, far away, an oya bird’s low, mournful call. There was something both incredibly lonely and heart-breakingly beautiful about the landscape, and for just a moment Ahsoka found herself wishing she had grown up here, surrounded by the swaying grass and the bruised purple sky.

Tylan seemed to notice her disquiet. “You okay?” she asked.

Ahsoka shook it off and nodded. “Let’s focus on hiking for today. We should get as far away from Togruta settlement as possible.”

“Agreed,” Tylan said - and for a while afterward they said nothing, instead focusing on the hike.

By mid-afternoon Ahsoka was scanning the horizon for any break in the landscape, anything that might suggest a rock formation where they could make a safe camp; but by nightfall she had seen only wide, endless grassland. As the sun set, she and Tylan drew to a halt. “Camp?” Tylan said, panting.

Ahsoka just nodded, still too out of breath to speak. The two of them hunkered down under the grass, aiming to present less of a target, and ate some of the dry rations from their kitbags. No fire here; it could attract unwanted attention.

Ahsoka wasn’t particularly fond of the idea of sleeping in the open, but they could share watches, and she had her awareness of the Force; if danger threatened, she should have advance warning. “Three hours on, three hours off?” she said as they finished the meal.

Tylan’s smile was wry. “All business while you’re on the job, huh?”

Ahsoka couldn’t help grinning in return. “We’ll celebrate when we bring back those akul teeth,” she said.

Tylan nodded. “Can’t disagree with that. I’ll take the first watch.”

Lying on the soft earth, Ahsoka watched the sky darken from indigo to deep blue above her head, and saw the stars flicker into existence all across the night sky. Very rarely did you see stars on Coruscant; she relished the sight, and the feeling of the swaying grass brushing her body, the smell of plant and damp earth all around her, the calls of nighttime birds and animals echoing across the plain. Closing her eyes, she brushed across the plains with her Force sense, touching the minds of every creature within a half mile radius. Nothing seemed hostile.

She didn’t realise she’d fallen asleep until she woke to Tylan gently shaking her arm. They didn’t need to speak; they traded off watches, and Ahsoka felt Tylan’s Force signature slip into sleep next to her as she scanned the nighttime plains. Nothing moved within several hundred metres of their position.

They traded off twice more, so it was Ahsoka who was awake to see another beautiful Shilian dawn as it broke over the grasslands to the east. For about a half hour she sat and watched it, mesmerized by the colours as they broke and shifted across the sky; then she turned and shook Tylan awake.

As they ate a quick breakfast Ahsoka said, “I think we should look for an akul today.”

Tylan nodded. “We’re far enough away from the settlements by now. I didn’t see anything last night, but if we keep moving north…”

“Agreed,” Ahsoka said, and when they stood up, they moved off at the same loping pace they’d kept up the previous day. They spent the morning hiking further into the grasslands, spears now in hand. There was more wildlife here; oya and pyree birds swooped past above her head, and several times Ahsoka spotted vula-wolves loping through the grass in packs, far away across the plains.

When the sun was at its highest point Ahsoka called a halt. “We should move slower now, so I have the chance to sense an akul, if we run into one.”

She made to move off, but Tylan stopped her with a hand on her arm. “I was serious about not being the best with a spear,” she said, “Are you any good?”

Somewhat hesitantly, Ahsoka nodded. The spear was a key part of the Hunter’s Trial; the only rule Novices had to follow when hunting the akul was that they were to bring no other weapon than the traditional spear, so Ahsoka had set herself to training with it as soon as she made the decision to pursue the Hunter’s Path. How Novices killed the akul with that spear was their choice; some might lure it into a hidden pit, while others might employ traditional rope traps to bind it to the ground or entangle it. Where some might sneak or lie in wait in the cover of the grass to ambush their prey, others might prefer to face it head on.

Ahsoka had practised and become rather adept with her spear, the same training that helped her excel in her ‘saber lessons helping her to develop her own style of flips and spins that made using the spear play to her strengths. She could get over her lack of physical strength with her agility and acrobatics - or so she hoped.

“Good,” Tylan said, “Lead on then, honoured Jedi.” The hint of her usual smirk had crept back onto her mouth.

They moved through the grasslands now at a comfortable walking pace, and Ahsoka tried to concentrate on both where she was walking and what she could feel in the world around her. It was hard to focus on both at the same time, and more than once Tylan had to catch her as she stumbled.

Their first day of searching proved unproductive, but they did find a small rock formation late in the day in which to make camp. They traded watches in much the same way as the night before, and Ahsoka spent her two watches on high alert, just waiting for the large predatory beast they hunted to try sneaking up on them in the middle of the night.

Another fruitless day dragged past in the same way, and Ahsoka began to grow conscious of time. They had only seven days to complete the Trial, and so far they had used three. They had to be careful not to get too far away from the settlement; even if they managed to kill an akul, if they returned late they would still fail the Trial.

Predictably, it was while she was distracted worrying about their time that she finally felt a strong predatory Force signature pop up on her internal radar.

She paused, focusing. It was large, intelligent, and disturbingly close. She took another few steps, trying to appear as if nothing were wrong while she frantically searched for the direction the presence was coming from.

There; to the east. The akul - or what she strongly suspected was an akul - was creeping toward them, staying out of sight under the chest-high grass.

Ahsoka realised with a lurch that _it_ was now stalking _them_.

“Keeping walking like normal,” she told Tylan, keeping her voice calm.

Tylan did so, slowly looking round at her. “Akul?” she asked.

“It’s stalking us. About thirty metres to our left. I think it thinks we still don’t know its there.”

Tylan’s hand tightened on her spear. “We play dumb?”

“I think so. Let’s try and lure it in.”

Continuing to walk casually through the grass felt like offering her own neck to the executioner’s axe, but Ahsoka forced herself to do it. She felt the akul creeping closer, closer, convinced, as far as she could tell, that it was still undetected.

“It’ll pounce at me first,” Ahsoka said, trying to keep her voice calm, “I’ll turn and stab it; you leap in and stab it while it’s distracted.”

“Aim for the neck,” Tylan said, her own voice clearly tense.

“Noted.”

Closer and closer it came, and the tightness in Ahsoka’s chest ratcheted up and up. The akul finally stopped several metres away, crouched down and invisible in the grass, and Ahsoka forced herself to keep walking, to keep acting like nothing was wrong. Beside her Tylan stalked; both of them had a white-knuckle grip on their spears.

Ahsoka sensed its intent moments before it lunged; that moment seemed to slow down to a crawl, as the akul powered its huge back legs and burst up out of the grass, making its leap toward her.

Her hand with the spear was ready; as it came on she turned, lightning quick, channelling every ounce of the Force she could muster into her limbs, and drove her spear right through the oncoming creature’s neck.

The akul made a horrible gurgling sound, a few teeth getting a glancing blow on her shoulder as she used her spear to push the creature around and away from her. Tylan was there, waiting, and as the confused akul struggled, she delivered the killing blow. Tylan drove her spear down through the monster's throat, and the akul went down with nothing more than a whimper.

For a moment Ahsoka just knelt there, breathing hard; then she threw back her head and yelled.

She heard Tylan laugh, then join in the yelling herself; for a moment they yelled and danced like wild creatures, revelling in the triumph and relief of victory. Tylan caught her up in a hug, and Ahsoka hugged back, laughing freely.

Her plan hadn’t just worked; it had worked _exceptionally_. She would be able to walk back to the settlement with pride, to hold her head high before Lhysa and Shayana and Shaak Ti and everyone else who had doubted her.

She let Tylan go, coming down from the momentary high. “The teeth,” she said, still out of breath.

“Your shoulder first,” Tylan said, already on one knee as she pulled bandages out of her kitbag.

Tylan bound the cut on her shoulder quickly, neatly wrapping it in a white bandage, and then the two of them set to work on the akul’s mouth. Ahsoka gained several more small cuts as she worked, though none as severe as the one on her shoulder; and the sun was low in the sky by the time they had extracted all the teeth from the akul. She could sense presences in the distance, no doubt drawn by the scent of blood; they would have to be away from here by nightfall.

Tylan had struck the killing blow, so she kept the front set of teeth, while Ahsoka took the back. Each had a special pouch in which to store them, and with both pouches full and secure in their kitbags, the two of them paused for a moment before turning for home.

“To Ahsoka and Tylan, Masters of the Hunter’s Path,” Ahsoka said, holding out her hand.

Laughing, Tylan took it. “Not quite yet, Jedi. Remember, we’ve still got to make it home.”

Ahsoka bared her teeth. “If anything thinks it’s going to stop me getting these teeth home, it’d better be prepared for a fight.”

Tylan threw back her head and let out a laugh that echoed around the grasslands.


End file.
